anabella are an umbrel why i got it to public service in the first place. i am so proud of her and her family, and she will do great things. we also have york for more -- former gov. with us. give him a big round of applause. if you're an outstanding senator for the next six years, bill nelson. [applause] korean brown and the chairwoman of the democratic party, debbie wasserman shelves are all here. let's hear it for your vader. -- for your mayor. in all of your year, and i am really happy about that. for the past several days all of us have been focused on the

storms that have taken place along the east coast, and obviously florida knows something about storms. as a nation we warn of those to of the losses. we-- we mourn those who have been lost. i talk to the governors and mayors every day. i want people to know what i talked to them i talking on behalf of america, and i have told them we will be with them every step of the way until they have fully recovered from the hardships and a crisis, and we will do it together, because that is how we do it in the united states of america. [applause] as heartbroken as we of the end result of the images of families who let that affect it, we also been inspired seeing police officers and firefighters rushing into burning buildings

and waiting water to save lives and neighbors helping neighbors cope with tragedy. leaders of different political parties working together to fix what is broken. we see a spirit that says no matter how bad a storm is, we will always bounce back. no matter how tough times are, we're all in this together. that we rise or fall as one nation and as one people. that spirit has guided his country along the improbable dirty for more than two centuries and carried us through the crowd tribulations of the past four years. remember in 2008 we were in the middle of the worst economic crisis since the great depression. we were in the middle of two wards. -- two wars. small businesses have created nearly half a million new jobs.

home values are beginning to rise again. we are less dependent on foreign oil than any time in the past 20 years off. because of the amazing service and sacrifice of the media -- raid men and women in uniform, the war in iraq is over. the war in afghanistan is coming to a close. al qaeda is on a run. osama bin laden is dead. [applause] so we've made real progress in these past four years. but we are here today, all of you are here today because you know and i know we have more work to do. as long as there is a single american that wants a job but cannot find one, our work is not yet done. as long as there are families working harder but still falling behind, our work is not yet done. >> as long as there is a child

anywhere, anywhere in the united states that is still languishing in poverty, far from opportunity, we know the fight must go on. our fight goes on because this nation cannot succeed without a growing, the writing off middle- class. our fight goes on because america always does best when everyone has a fair shot. and everyone does their fair share. everyone plays by the same rules. that is what we believe. that is why you elected me in 2008, and that is why i'm running for a second term as president of the united states. [applause] now, florida, it into days, you

have a choice to make, it is not just a choice between two parties or candidates, but a choice between two different visions of america. on the one hand, you could choose to return to the policies that clashed our economy. -- a crash the economy or join me in building a future that focuses on a strong and middle- class. as americans we honor the dreamers and risktakers who have been the driving force behind the free enterprise system. the greatest engine of growth and prosperity the world has ever known, but we also believe in this country our economy grows best, the markets do best when everyone has that she is to succeed. when everyone is getting a good

education. when every worker is learning new skills. when we are investing in research for medical breakthroughs and new technologies. we think america is stronger when everyone can count on affordable, quality health insurance. when we protect medicare and social security so we guarantee dignity and respect and -- dignity and respect in retirement. if our economy works best when there are rules in place. you know, there is some things we do not want washington to do. we do not want politicians in washington, most of whom are male, to control health-care decisions that women can make for themselves. [applause] sopnow, for a year's we as a

president who share these beliefs. his name was bill clinton. his economic plan and the ask the wealthiest americans to pay a little bit more so we could reduce the deficit still invest in the skills and ideas of our people. at the time the republicans in congress and the senate candidates by the name of mitt -- i don't want you to boo, i want you to vote. i want you to vote. the republican candidates by the name of mitt romney said bill clinton's plans would hurt the economy and kill jobs. turns out the mouth was just as bad then as it is now. -- the math was just as bad then

as it is now. america created 23 million new jobs. our deficit had turned into a surplus. florida, we know our ideas work. we also know their ideas do not. because we try their ideas, too. we tried giving insurance companies and oil companies free rein to do whatever they please. you know what they got. we got falling incomes and record deficits. you have ideas that we tried and did not work, and ideas that we tried it did work. you would think there would be a pretty clear choice, but mitt romney is a very talented

salesman. so in this campaign, he has tried as hard as he can to repackage these old ideas that did not work, and pretend there are new ideas and offering them up as a change. but here is the thing, florida, we know what changed looks like. what mitt romney is offering is not it. giving more power back to the biggest bang -- biggest banks is not change. another five trillion in tax cuts for the wealthy is not change. refusing to answer questions about the details of your policy is definitely not change. politicians have been during that long time. ruling out compromise by pledging to reverse the of the agenda in congress is not changed. changing the fax when they are inconvenient to your campaign, that certainly is not change.

here is the thing, when you make this choice, who do trust? he did not know what crisis the next president will confront. you do not know what challenge you have to be that is unexpected. part of what you are focused on is how does someone operate? florida, after four years of president, you know we might now. you may not agree with every decision i've made, michelle does not agree with every decision i've made, and you may be frustrated some time with the change of pace, i am frustrated sometimes, but here is the thing, you know i say what i

mean and mean what i say. i said i would pass health care reform, and i passed it. i said i would repeal don't ask, don't tell. i repealed it. i said we would make sure the auto industry came back strong. it has come back strong. you know what i believe in stand. and you know what i will fight for what i believe in and know- how. years"]g four mor"four more

[applause] when you're trying to compare the candidates agendas, and we are talking about change, you know and i know what real change looks like. i have the scars to prove it. i have a gray hair to prove it. after all we've been through to get to the change, we cannot give up now, because there is more change to do. change is a country where every american has a shot at a good education. parents you have to parents. students, europe to study. don't tell the students who cannot afford college should just borrow more money from the

parents. that was not an option for me. i bet it is not an option for a lot of you. that is why the change i want to bring is to cut the growth of tuition and half over the next 10 years. make college more affordable. i want to recruit 100,000 new math and science teachers are we do not fall behind the rest of the world. i want to train businesses -- or to train americans for the businesses that are high renown. that is change. that is what i am fighting for in this election. [applause] change comes when we live up to this country's legacy of innovation. i'd believe in change what i bet on the american auto industry, but i really proud of not just the fact that we're building cars in america again, but we're

building cars -- better cars because of technology and innovation. karzai we are building now by the middle of the next decade were " -- will vote twice as far. it will help national security in the environment. it is not just the auto industry where we can make these kinds of strides. thousands of workers all across america, including here in florida, a better making -- lasting batteries, wind turbines and solar panels. i want to subsidize and support the energy jobs of tomorrow, the new technologies that will cut oil imports in half. i do not want to reward companies that ship jobs overseas, but those that are investing here in america, hiring american workers and making things made in america. . that is the future i see for

this country. change is turning the page on a decade of war so we can do as a nation building here at home. as long as i am commander in chief, we will pursue the strongest military the world has ever known, but it is time to use the savings from ending the war is to pay down the debt and rebuild america. rebuilding roads and bridges and making sure the schools are state of art. hiring veterans when we come home, because if he fought for this country, you should not to fight for a job would you come home. -- have to fight for a job when you come home. that is what is at stake in this election. change is a future where we reduce our deficit in a way that is balanced and responsible. i have cut a trillion dollars worth of spending. i intend to do more.

if we're serious about reducing the deficit, if we have to ask the wealthiest americans to go back to the tax rate from when bill clinton was president, because if budgets are about choices. we cannot do everything. we have to picture what we do, we pay for. i will not turn on medicare and about your just to pay for another millionaires' tax cuts. -- we have to figure out how to pay for what we do. we know what the future's requires, and we know it will not be easy. back in 2008 we talked about change you can believe in, but i also said that this is hard, because i was not just talking about changing presidents or parties, i was talking about changing how politics is done in

this party. i ran the first time because the voices of the american people have been shut out of the democracy for way too long by its lobbyists and special interest. they want to protect the status quo. for the past four years the status quo in washington has fought us every step of the way. they have spent millions to stop us from reforming the health- care system. millions try to stop us from reforming wall street. -- trying to stop us from reforming wall street. refuse to compromise even on ideas that democrats and republicans to support in the past. what they're counting on now is you will be so worn down and discouraged by all the squabbling, so tired of the dysfunction, that you will give up, walk away, and be the powers that be in power.

in other words, they are betting on your cynicism. florida, my bet is on you and your help. ope. [applause] listen, i want all parties to work together. we're not democrats and republicans first, we are americans first. whenever the other party has been willing to work with me to help middle-class families and build sturdy ladders, i work with them. some of us supported us when we cut taxes for small businesses and small families. senators work with is to repeal don't ask, don't tell. as long as i am president, i will work with anybody from any party to this country forward. if you want to break the gridlock in congress, you will vote for leaders who feel the same way. who put you first instead of politics first, instead of the

next election first. but sometimes you have to fight for principle. sometimes you have to fight for what is right. if the price of peace in washington is cutting deals that will kick students off of financial aid or get rid of funding for planned parenthood for lead insurance companies discriminate against people with pre-existing conditions or eliminate the health care for millions on medicaid, i am not willing to pay that price. that is not bipartisanship. that is not changed. that is surrendered. do the same status quo that has hurt the middle class and cost us jobs. i do not know about you, but i am not ready to go out on that fight. i hope you are not either, florida. i hope you still have some fight left in you. listen, the folks at the very

top of this country do not need another chair the and in washington. there will always have a seat at the table and have influence. the people they need a champion are the americans whose letters are read late at night after i am done in office. the men and women i meet on the campaign trail off like you every day. the laid-off worker who has to go back and retrained at the age of 55 to get a new career in a new field, she needs a champion. the restaurant owner who cooks great food but needs a loan to expand after the bank turned him down, he needs a champion. the cooks, waiters, and cleaning staff working overtime at the fort lauderdale hotel tried to saving up to buy a first, or send their kids to college, they need a champion. the worker back on the job building a great car, he needs a

champion. the teacher who was in an overcrowded classroom, maybe digging into her pocket to buy school supplies. not getting the support she needs, but showing up every day knowing she will make a difference in that one child today. she needs a champion. the young immigrant who was brought here, pledged allegiance to are applied -- to our flag, understands themselves to be american, they need a champion. all those kids on in cities and small farm towns, the rolling virginia hills, the streets of hollywood, kids dreaming of becoming scientists, doctors, diplomats, business people, even president, they need a champion in washington. because they do not have lobbyists.

they do not make campaign contributions, but those kids, their dreams, that will be are saving grace. we have to fight for them, and that is why i need you, fla., to make sure their voices are heard. to make sure your voices are heard. we'll come too far to turn back now. we of come to far to let our hearts go free -- profaned. it is time to keep pushing -- pushing forward to educate our kids, create new jobs, discover new sources of energy. the broaden -- to broaden the middle class restore the democracy to make sure no matter who you were, where you come from, no matter what your last name is, no matter whether you're black, white, hispanic, young, old, rich, poor, disabled, gay, straight, it does not matter. if you work hard, you can make a year in america, too.

if that is what we're fighting for. that is why i am asking florida. if you're willing to work with me, make some phone calls for me, turn out for me, we're going to win florida. we will win this election. we will reaffirm the bond that holds this country together. we will reaffirm the spirit that makes the united states of america off the greatest nation on earth. god bless, you. that was the united states of america. -- god bless the united states of america. ♪ like a fool, i went and stayed too long ♪ here i am, signed, sealed, and delivered ♪ ♪ i am yours ♪ that time i went and said

goodbye, now i am back and not afraid to cry ♪ ♪ oh, baby, here i am signed, sealed, and delivered, i am yours ♪ ♪ i've done a lot of foolish things ♪ i? ♪n't >> president barack obama on his second stop of the day in the final days before all of you go to the polls and vote on tuesday. hollywood, florida. the president will travel to cincinnati, ohio, and a late- night rally in colorado. today is part of campaign 2012

review live events of the president of candidates and their surrogates on the trail. we want to get your thoughts on what you've heard. you've heard from the president in hollywood, florida and other events today. independents, 202, 585, 382. we will get to your phone calls in just a minute. let me begin with the state capital bureau chief for the tampa bay times during us to talk about president obama's event. why hollywood florida? tell us about his strategy here. >> think you very much. great question. the answer is an odd is 1 for anyone who studies politics. hollywood, fla., is the second- largest city and robert county florida. it is one of the most heavily

democratic urban counties in the united states of america. president obama needs a huge turnout in brought word county. in recent elections it has been underperforming. it did not underperform in 2008. but he needs to maximize the level of enthusiasm off between now and tuesday to get as many democratic votes out as possible. brought word -- broward is the most heavily-democratic county in the state of florida. we have had huge lines of the early voting sites. neither side is taking florida for granted. tomorrow we will get visits from it wrongly and from first lady michelle obama. they're both doing events in and around orlando. it is considered very important the white election in florida.

to go mitt romney around orlando. why that area? >> he is doing it an event early tomorrow morning at the airport hangar just north of orlando on your map. that is where michelle obama will be as well. that is a swing area. it leaves a democratic, at least or land of us. mitt romney has been performing very well and i-4 corridor. bedtimes released a poll showed mitt romney has a six point lead, 51-45%. we will see if that happens or not. -- we released a poll that showed irani has a six point lead. >> why would the president go to broward county today and not to a swing area to give it his way? >> i think because he gets

warming to his book when it goes to south florida politically. this is a big crowd. there is a large african- american community in south florida. macarthur high school is in florida. it is a big area where this area that you are looking at where president obama campaign today was hugely important to bill clinton in 1996. and has been a very strong area, but it has been underperforming in recent elections. what is happening is a lot of the new retirees, predominantly jewish, have been dying. while it is still democratic, not overwhelmingly democratic as it once was. it is still a huge mother lode of votes for democrats. >> what will you be watching for on election night? >> i will watch for two-three

areas that are in -- better very important. number one is jacksonville. jacksonville, fla., is an area that is strongly republican. president obama only lost it by two percentage points off to john mccain four years ago. it is even remotely that close this time, i think mitt romney is in trouble in florida. jackson bill -- jacksonville is in a foreign place. it is home to swing voters, undecideds, independents, single moms. growing population of non-cuban hispanics to be democratic. -- who leave the democratic. palm beach county is extremely important. it leans democratic, but mitt romney people feel they have

made important inroads, project early with the jewish community who they say they're not comfortable with the presidency of on israel. -- the presidents stance on israel. >> what about voted on election day in the state of florida? is the state prepared, and could there be another possible repeat of what happened in 2000? >> statistically you would think of it do not favor something -- like what happened in 2000 again, but of course it could happen again. secondly, the big concern is the fact that we have historically long ballot. in florida, as in many states, a lot of those people but only in

the major elections. they are paying attention to the race between president obama and mitt romney. there will vote on tuesday. when they get to the polls on tuesday it will be surprised because the ballot includes many judicial elections. it includes 11 proposed constitutional amendments. the ballot is very long, and there is no time limit on how long the person can take to boats. some election supervisors indicate they are concerned about the possibility of long lines of the polls on tuesday, which could lead a late night for results. to go we of heard some lingering problems with palm beach county. -- >> we have heard there may be some problems with palm beach county. >> they have absentee ballots that had a printing error. those ballots had to be redone at by hand.

just one of those things. palm beach county was the home of the so-called butterfly ballots in 2000 in which pat buchanan got an anomalistic tens es.thousands of boatvot a little dark cloud eight over all the county in presidential elections. they have a very strong supervisor of elections down there, but it is a big county. it has had problems with the printing of absentees. did they say they would have all taken care of by tuesday? >> they say they will, but it will be a late night. both sides are rallying for a huge turnout. the could be a big turnout of long lines tuesday. it is important -- an important place to watch.

>> think you sir, for your time. you, sir, for your time. we want to turn our attention to the closing days before the election. we of been bringing you events all day. we will continue to do so. mitt romney making his third stop in pennsylvania coming up here in an hour or so. he is expected to arrive around 5:30 eastern time. there could be some delays. we will bring you live coverage of that event here on c-span. of the day before he goes on to newport news, virginia. let's begin with mike in kentucky. a republican there. you are on the air. what are your thoughts on the election? >> i was just listening to the

president, and he was making the statement there. husbands and wives do not always agree with each other. that is the liberty and freedom we have here in our country. we do not always agree with one another. i disagree with the president this year. i probably would have voted for him, but the issues concerning same-sex marriages are way off. that is not what marriage should be about. i will not vote for him this year. host: did you vote for him in 2008? caller: i pretty much cast my vote in that direction.

i've always been democratic. all of the democrats have always have my vote, but this year the religious point of view has really caught my attention. this is a country in which we're supposed to trust and believe in god. in god we trust. i do not think -- i do not know how to put it -- we're putting too much emphasis on things that should not be in religion. marriage is a religious matter and belongs to the church. host: did you say your devoted? -- you already voted? caller: no. hear from kathleen and pennsylvania. independent calller.

go ahead. you are on the air. caller: i do not understand why nothing has changed. he thinks there's more jobs. does he understand this is the holidays and a lot of people need extra work? i do not understand why he is not counting that into -- host: you have to turn your television down. you are getting the feedback. o.ller: hello, how're y host: what are your thoughts? are you voting for president obama? caller: definitely. i voted for him the last time and will vote for him this time.

i was on the fence at one point, however, i am a white female varied, college-educated, working woman over 65. i do not believe that there romney. he has changed his opinions about everything on earth. he changes whenever looks like a good thing to do. host: you said you were on the fence. why were you on the fence before? caller: because of all the economic things. and because of the marriage thing. but we have to realize we live in a democracy. we are not the only people in it. i do not know it wrongly says that the things he says.

-- mitt romney believes that the thing he says. -- half the things he says. caller: i think i am probably going to vote for obama. i ever republican actually. for this of reason that i have three daughters. 17, 21, and 23. i have grown up very uncomfortable with how the republican party has been dealing with issues and the way they have been talking about rape and all that stuff. that scared me really. i realize over when he was let it took a strong stance on some singers. -- took a strong stance on some singer.

i waited for that moment for their body to do the same thing and say to the most extreme elements of the base to be a bit. he did not do it. he did not show leadership. he is not going to earn my vote. i waited for his taxes. to be honest with you, i waited for the taxes and cannot get over the fact that he is not shown more than two years. that bothers me a lot. host: why? caller: my daughter had to show five years for a federal job. if my daughter shows by year's returns, and she did not have 5 because that is claiming her before. she showed that for normal federal job, i expect to have an executive to a least show the same amount of return. host: like to will not vote for president obama. betty and wisconsin.

independent calller. -- mike that will now vote for president obama. caller: i watch everything on all three tds. i used to work for a republican congressman on the hill many years ago during watergate. his policies were -- the republican policies were completely different then. they got along. they would get along. it is not the way it is now. it is totally different. my biggest thing is the pledges they make to norquist, why don't they make the pledge to the american people? that is where -- to their working for. -- who they are working for. host: moving on to donna and

floridin florida. caller: i have been listening for over a year to this, and i am amazed at how many people are going for what mitt romney is selling. earlier on iran was consistent in everything he was for. and red run the first debate he totally change. everytime i see him he is doing something different now. i watch it all. it is obvious he was not getting enough votes on his true platform. host: have you been watching over the past few days as we wind down to tuesday? what you make of the closing arguments? caller: i just do not understand

how people can be fooled by this. i think it is clear when you have all of these republicans in office now who have shined -- signed the pledges and tax and everything. what it comes down to, if america votes for mayor wrong a what we're doing is allowing them to have all the presidency. -- bought the presidency. host: we will leave it there. we will be back with more of your phone calls after it rodis event indoors bill, pennsylvania. he is supposed to arrive around 5:30 eastern time. we will see the mix of there on time. this is part of his third stop of the campaign. he has been in one, ohio -- des

moines, iowa, ohio and will end up in virginia. the president has been in concord, new hampshire, then hollywood, florida. mitt romney has not campaigned in the state of pennsylvania since september. polls on the front page shoat pennsylvania is still at play, all tied up between the candidates. that is the front page this sunday morning. we will bring you that what happens here on c-span. first, look at the effects of social media on social change. you will hear from the founder and ceo of change.org. he discusses the use of peer to peer communications to change public policy on issue of

immigration, get rights and national editorial journal moderates this at the second annual atlantic meet specific conference. it is about 45 minutes. we will be back after that. >> think you. -- thank you. like many institutions this did not exist 10 years ago and now growing at a rapid pace. he is a graduate of stanford university. he has been listed in time magazine 100 most influential people in the world in 2012. congratulations on that certainly. let the start with this before we talk about the details in the room. a lot of people not fully aware of the problem -- platform you've created. talk about what you created what you did, and how it has evolves. >> great to be here. they keehank you.

i initially wanted to be an investment banker. my senior year i go home and one of my other younger brothers, says he is gay. he said the thing that was most painful for him was not people that were explicitly anti-gay, the people that refuse to stand up -- that would stand up against him. i reflected about what i want to do with my life. i went from the track of what to do to be an investor a banker to get involved in social change. after a number of years, reading many books, experiencing power in washington, i started to organize a pop formed to organize around issues people care about. we started this in 2007 and failed for 2.5 years. over the past year and half, things have taken off. more than 20 million members

around the world. if i were to identify a one thing that the differentiation between when we failed and now is specificity. social justice movements, historically over the past few decades there is an inclination for big, national or global movements in change. when to stop global warming, advance gay-rights. while those are laudable aims, there is not a lot of specific action you could take that is effective. we changed starting with the oldest tool, the petitions. this is very small, incremental change. that is spreading like wildfire. people use the site to do what? to post petitions? >> exactly.

it is just a petition site. it now has the tools to take the people who signed the petitions and mobilize them. these are very specific. literally three fields. what you want to change in who has the power to change it, and why should people join you? 20,000 that started. many of them go by road. to go where did the inspiration coalesce into the idea of petitions? how did you focus in on petitions? >> initially was using the web to organize people around, and objectives. this started in 2005. i was in washington, d.c., and disenchanted with a first experience in government. i was doing government consulting for education companies.

i got involved with the website and you see the capacity for people to come together around personal interest. the same technology can be used to organize people by the issues they care about. it is very historic structural dilemma where it is extremely expensive for the time to organize people. by virtue of that we you -- you have aids objectives that are oftentimes less powerful. that was the genesis of the idea. we build a massive tool set for people to organize. it was only after many different experiences we found there was incremental change that was most effective way to win the campaign. >> shift to the paradigm. historically one of the greatest

expenses and politics is finding people who agree with you. i think about how common cause was founded. did they took up a full page in "the new york times" to raise money. moveon.org, the internet flips the paradigm where people who agree with you can find you. they can find you essentially no cost. it grows exponentially faster. is the twist here that people agree with -- in other words, if you went out in sifted through the great mass of america to buy the people who agree with you, expensive, but the internet makes it possible to turn that around >> it makes the cost revealed here did not just an individual but hundreds of thousands of people in real time.

it would of been not just really expensive to do, you would have to raise -- one of my favorite campaigns over the past few months related to the presidential election is there a 316-year-old girls in new jersey in a civics class a and it find out there has not a female moderator of president of debates in 10 years. the start a petition to except a female moderator. they get 170,000 people to join. they go in perches in front of the debate commission and get huge amounts of press on fox news or cnn or what have you. if you had i created the expense that would be required to pay for the campaign in the media, millions of dollars. it is exciting that stands on all the time in from in the individual. -- that can happen at any time

and from any individual. what had been the most successful campaign so far? >> the campaign that inspired us to give it from the very broad objective was the incredible campaign about a year and a half ago in south africa. a huge global explosion of campaigns change. a woman walking down the street and she gets grabbed and thrown into a shack and raped and almost killed. recent issues a lesbian woman and the man was trying to turn her street. awful thing called collectively. a good friend it sees this -- sees this and start a petition and ask the minister of justice to take issue seriously. 180,000 people take action. a huge overall media exposure. after about a month of

campaigning that government apologizes and parliament passes a bill to have a task force to investigate the issue of corrective. it is an amazing demonstration of people power. >> would have had the biggest impact in the u.s.? >> one of the most powerful campaigns was the treyvone martin case. a 17-year-old african-american killed in florida tragically. two weeks of the incident there was no media coverage of all. a private injustice. the parents start a petition in a those viral -- and then it goes viral. the importance is not just the individual acts of arresting his killer in prosecuting him, but the public. the results, the awareness of the tragic situation of young african-americans not being treated fairly in the justice

system or the standard round loss where you can almost and punitively shoes and one of the come out at you. that is some of that really exciting things we see. >> in treyvone martin clearly there was an impact, but there were not waiting. there were in there pretty soon on the case. what i want to ask you, do you find a difference in the way that companies -- you have a lot of petitions aimed at companies that do specific things. obviously some have had more political implications. is there a difference in response between business institutions and political institutions? >> politicians are must -- much less responsive. so switching costs -- i tell members of congress this and

they love it, the switching costs are reallybrands are in ct places, where public perception is the biggest value the house. if you start to attack that on twitter and facebook, they are very sensitive. they have many more staff dedicated to observing the sentiments of social media. they are much more responsive. whereas politicians are often lagging in engagement in social media for actual policy. not just pushing content, but in beijing. >> from the point of view of companies, i can see how they might be responsive to a campaign about the attributes of a product, like whether they are using biodegradable cups. you can imagine something like the czech -- chick fil a controversy. dozens of users mobilized,

saying, stop contributing to groups hostile to the rights. ralph reed organized tens of thousands of people to ascend e- mails on the other side, from the faith and freedom coalition. and does the capacity to organize duluth the inherent polarization in any way? or does it provide another battlefield in which it plays out? >> there are so many battles that are not partisan debates, but are not, underlying things that are not cultural battles. there is actually a bill about to pass in congress. it used to be the case that it is legal for rental car companies to not return recalled cars. the can have cars that are dangerous. enterprise and hurts got a loophole -- hertz got a loophole in a transportation bill.

in 2004, two girls who rented a pt cruiser, it flames out and they both died. their mom and of having a civil lawsuit for the next eight years, and winds. but the law did not change, still had not changed. it is only after she starts a petition on the site and embarrasses enterprise, and is going to be on the today show, that enterprise changes the policy. that is not controversial. , the order of magnitude more than you see. >> as you say, you have evolved from the broad global to the more specific and local. but i have seen you say something to the effect that we want to move from moments to movements. and comfortable with where you are? >> the more tangible, the more narrow, the bigger the impact

you can have. is that where you envision this in seven years? or would you be disappointed if you are not making the circle back to figuring out how to influence broader issues? >> we look at the to the tree -- trajectory of social movements. you and upstarting small. lbj, and the context of no organizers, passes the civil rights act. you refused to sit in the back of the bus. you went incrementally, from families to cities to country. that is the kind of tools we want to build, to start a foothold of local change, and aggregate across the country. a small example is an attempted movement around and in plastic bags in america, by virtue of increasing attacks. >> i have seen it in bethesda, maryland.

>> it is a change in individual cities. you win nationally by winning locally. a 13-year-old girl with an eighth grade project started a campaign asking her hometown to pass a plastic bag tax. the plastics industry gets a state law passed in the state of illinois to make it illegal to pass her plastic bags taxes. she responds to petition the governor of the state to veto the bill. after getting more than 100,000 people to join, the governor calls her on her home phone line about a month ago, says, "i am going to veto the bill." in response, all these young girls starting campaigns around the country, in their towns, trying to pass plastic bag taxes. you win hundreds of small victories, but you start with zero emmys, -- start with one. >> you were describing it as aggregating. but do you see a way to tackle

some of the bigger issues you would be concerned about? how does this translate into climate change, to take one example? how would this platform ultimately, three years from now, if president obama wins a second term, 2013 on the table -- can you influence debates like that? >> we do not take official positions on policies, but i will give you an example on climate change. i would bet that instead of a large national campaign -- congress does not make decisions. members of congress make decisions. all politics is local. instead of a large campaign around congress, if you have 43513-year-old girls start local campaigns -- if you have 435 13- year-old girls start local campaigns, you have a different campaign. another example on immigration is happening already.

this pitch partisan battle on emigration exists at a national level. if you look at the way policy impact real lives, he changes lives. we have kids that will start petitions in defense of their friends who are going to be deported to countries they have never known. there are tens of thousands a graduate high school every year. there is a case where a sick kid who was brought into the country at age 2, his dad dies, his mom is in a mental asylum -- he is huge and successful. only when he goes to pay a parking ticket, right before going to college, does he find out he was undocumented. he is deported to the country he never knew. he does not speak spanish. should that person be departed? and -- deported? you have a different argument and illegal immigrants. -- than illegal immigrants. instrumental in, there is a

broader movement for national change. >> you mentioned the causes are not ideological, but many start on the center and move to the left, in terms of the biggest priorities. is there a conservative analog? >> we are seeing more and more conservative campaigns. a lot of the campaigns on corporate accountability are started by conservatives. we engage with petition creators when the start of viral and petitions. the company target ends up, about a week before thanksgiving last year, announced that all their workers, for the first time, are going to have to work on thanksgiving. there is a worker in kansas to start a petition. this 150,000 people to join, condemning target for being anti-family. this is a ron hall supporter. she thought it just seemed wrong. this campaign around and tries to it -- around enterprise cars

-- the loophole in the transportation bill seems wrong. these are non partisan campaigns. >> we saw a petition to boycott, and amazon because jeff these of supported the game marriage amendment in washington state. -- because jeff bezos support to the gay marriage amendment in washington state. >> it is like youtube, an open platform. most campaigns are about changing the status quo. it tends toward social justice. but it is certainly the case -- look at check -- chick fil'a. there were such asking for universities to revoke their right to sell because they fund anti-gay movement. there were opposite campaigns, asking universities to affirm the free-speech rights. what you find is campaigns that

are building people up, that scene just who, that resonate with moral value -- that seem just, they resonate with moral value. things that seem to be regressive cannot be shared as vrially -- virally. >> two things are happening. we are more not worked and ever. the ability of an individual to communicate -- mass communication without mass media, available almost to individuals. we are more connected than ever. on the other hand, politically, we are as polarized as ever. highest level of party-line voting in congress since the late 19th century. it is possible barack obama will win 80% of non-white votes and only 40% of whites. the gap with the opposite party is the widest it has ever been,

and more so every election. steve think the networking technology is a force that is making together and bridging our differences, or one that is excess operating and polarizing? >> it has the capacity for either. as you have increasing networks are run single from groups, filtering out the things you do not believe, filtering in only things that a firmer prejudice'' -- that is a trend. the other trend is transcending politics through storytelling. the devices around immigration, not building people up, but dividing people against each other. when you hear her policies affect local people. -- when you hear how politics affect local people, you have a greater social support. this is not a national debate that divides people. it is what is happening locally, in real communities, on a daily

basis. there tends to be more agreement on local trains and national change. >> on a local level, it transcends difference? >> there are things that are more personal, like saving a local park or a teacher that was fired for being gay. there was a huge partisan battle around the employment nondiscrimination act, which gives nondiscrimination policy for gay and lesbian americans. in 29 states in the country, you can be fired for being gay. there was a campaign a year ago where a teacher in oregon was fired for being gay. the parents were outraged. the campaign. hundreds protested. the superintendent apologised and gave the java spec. when you asked those people in the abstract whether they support a special policies for lesbian and gay americans, would not have supported them. in their community, there is

more support. >> not that you are responsible for violence. as you look at the centrifugal and centripetal forces of work, in the long run, are we on a trajectory to become more united or more divided? >> i think more united. it is a time of solidarity, and insight into the way other people experience life. it is not how policy happens in the abstract, but individual experiences. that is the trajectory of social justice movements and the individual expansion of rights, fairness, and justice, expanding over the last 200 years, and accelerating. the rights in america is a great example. it is the civil rights movement of our time. there is an incredible rapidity of empathy, in the sense of shared consciousness.

you have overwhelming support now, especially among young people. it shows that people, when there is storytelling and shared information, he can to have greater empathy and solidarity. >> how do you keep the doors open? what is the finance tax >> my mom. >> office -- the finance? >> my mom. >> what is the financial media -- model that allows this to go? >> we allow nonprofits to connect to people. they sponsor petitions and videos. someone comes onto the site and shares something about environmental sustainability. the sierra club might be featured as a sponsor a petition. the paper advertising. >> how big is that? >> 150 staff around the world. we have 20 million members. it is all about scale. the internet is all about

massive scale. the number of people we should be able to mobilize, and order of - two more. it is not necessarily better. this is the exponential growth of the internet. that is because of the four historical change, because of that rapid expansion. we have more members, able to generate more revenue. >> we are heading toward, if we have not passed, a billion dollars spent on presidential advertising. most of it going to nine states, 6% of the population. it would have been cheaper to buy every undecided voters in ohio a television at this point. here is mitt romney with a 40 inch plasma. appreciate your consideration. we are talking about congress and responding. what about the way it -- do you think the balance of the way that we communicate in the race

for president, which is, along with the super bowl, one of our big civic activities -- to you think the balance is when to shift? -- is going to shift? do you weak individuals on line, or use this carpet bombing television approach? >> in maybe 2028. i see the destruction. individuals cannot care about disruption. you have to expose a message to many people in a convincing matter. if you get enough people to do that on your behalf, it is as valuable, if not more so. a billion dollars seems like a lot of money. but if you can aggregate the connections of 300 million people talking amongst each other about candidates, the value is much greater. if you have aggregation of social media, the capacity for people to receive information

through friends instead of mainstream broadcasts, you are going to undermine the value of every dollar and increase the value of personal relationships. it may not happen tomorrow or in four years, but that is where we are headed. facilitating content through those networks will be more influential. horizontal communication, as opposed to the vertical coming down the track. money goes from all over the country into the campaign headquarters. what comes back up its television ads. kind of a triangle. you are talking about mobilizing people to communicate across horizontal networks. >> there is more money going into that each campaign. but they are still betting the most heavily on the old tools. >> it is just the early stages. you used to have a specific opinion and propagate that, circumscribed by the geographic

for some of the. now, it is propagated across twitter or facebook. most of my friends, certainly my younger brother, are consuming, content through facebook or twitter. that is not just mainstream media. it is produced by friends of theirs. that increases horizontal the, friends of friends. that destabilizes the traditional pop down communication, and undermines the value of an incremental dollar for the campaign. it increases the value of people. >> watching my younger son consumer media, a great investment for obama would be to invest in ads in surf the videos. -- surf videos. to what extent is all of this the preserve of an upper-middle- class, college educated slice of society?

is what is happening here truly engaging all americans? is it a way one slice is finding more like-minded folks, but not reaching beyond? >> this is one of the things we are excited and surprised about. empowering the least powerful. the biggest differentiation are those that had no voice. the most consistent example is school closures. a huge number of campaigns, local campaigns, of people kicked out of their homes. the cannot reach the loan officer of the bank. by embarrassing the local bank, they get media awareness and stay in their home. these are the most downtrodden people. the second is immigration, people who are not even legally in this country, and documented, who are able to start campaigns on their behalf or the behalf of their friends.

>> ultimately, you are not good to be able to launch a campaign on behalf of millions of people facing foreclosure. the house to be dealt with by some kind of policy, if at all. your view is you are building awareness, case by case, that ultimately translates into system affection. >> if people realize that foreclosure is not about people who are irresponsible, who should know better, but see the real people who are infected -- clearly, in some cases, in just circumstances. it chips away at the fall suspicion of irresponsible homeowners. >> questions from the audience. if you could identify yourself? >> my name is barry. i am wondering what restrictions you may place on this petition campaigns. what about the problem of vigilantes?

to give you an example, let us say a couple of us decided that diane sawyer was ruining abc news because she had moved to to an accord journalism. would you accept that? >> anybody can start a petition. what you can to find is the kind of petitions that expand resonate in a deep way with a large group of people. they tend not to be divisive and hateful, things you might be skeptical of. in some situations, there will be petitions that are dubious. they are flagged, almost always, by the community, and often removed. the campaigns that have expanded our positive social change that many people resonate with. >> i would give you the microphone. please of identify yourself. >> i am done no wise.

-- daniel weiss. how does your website interact with the international community? for someone like myself, i am just curious what the overall picture is. do you map out the hot topics? is it a real dialogue? >> retired in about 15 countries. more than a million new members a month are joining the site. groups that did not have much online activity -- indeed it is a great example. immense numbers of victories in india, particularly around corruption campaigns. individual officers requesting bribes are being exposed and given center. -- censure. the magnitude of needed improvement of justice is much

greater internationally than in the united states. >> to you capture information of people? >> at most, the post code or zip code. then, we are able to target people. >> do you find somebody else who wants to do an environmental petition? >> just like with amazon, if someone is interested, we personalize recommendations for campaigns. >> to the campaigns by that from you? >> no. people can campaign to sponsor campaigns. if you are featured on the site, it is a sponsor petition. >> we see you signed for petitions on recycling. here is one that might be interesting. >> absolutely. >> have you discovered a class of people that are habitual sex

who has signed the most petitions? -- who are habitual? who has signed the most petitions? >> thousands. some people go crazy. the increase in likelihood of signing a petition after experiencing a victory. historically, there has not been a lot of demonstrated impact. the reason is very large movements around getting president obama to starke -- to stop climate change. very difficult to do. local victories, people recommend -- recognize the capacity to make a difference. >> the must be issues people wanted raised in the presidential debate. >> there were a lot of those. mostly, petitions are related to things like incremental change. , both of these campaigns that are winning and running, even in congress -- there is a recent

bill around military veterans and housing clean water on a bunch of bases. it is less sexy, but change is happening on a local level. there are small campaigns on the internet. >> another question in the back- middle, and then we will come up here. >> you mentioned your early days seemed inspiring. could you elaborate on the first two or three years, and how you got through that his failure to success? how did you finance that? how big was your team? how did that go? >> that is a good question. depressed. i started with a good friend of mine, a tech guy, doing everything, and i was the ideas guy. a lot easier job. , it was just the two of us. a guy from northwestern, a friend of us. it was the three of us, the

first three years. what you do is to deter right. you launch a product. you see the response. you look at the numbers on google and politics. you shift and build additional features. -- google analytics. we built almost everything. social fund raising. none of it worked. it was after we peeled back those different features that we figured it out. the most determining factor -- this is the case for almost any venture. it is relentless determination it is the excel richter program called -- accelerator program. this is looking at large consumer internet sites. the biggest factor in the success of the team is the relentless determination to do whatever is necessary to succeed. we should never, ever give up.

and >> hold on. you need a microphone. over here. >> nancy. i have a quick high-tech question for you, concerning relentless petitions. every time i go to a supermarket or target, there is always someone with a cause and a petition. sometimes, i am interested. sometimes, i do not have the time. have you thought of coming up with an app? you can walk out and say, "i will texture app." just to avoid confrontation and that kind of negative interaction. >> our goal is to reduce the barriers of civic participation. the big part of that is mobile.

we just hired engineers to work on that. not only will there be up petition. you would walk into a target and could automatically see any campaigns that are targeting the company that time. supply chain management. policies are on worker rights. you would be able to join immediately, in real time, based on where you are. >> a microphone is coming up to you. >> hello. fred colorado. -- powell. disaggregation applies to energy and medicine. the affordable care act is being challenged because that represented a the segregation --

disaggregation of supplying the services. solar energy, we have a massive delivery system. what do you do when you try to disaggregate? >> there is almost nobody suppose we do not step on. you have a status quo. all the campaigns are either going to be offending or undermining the power structure of some entity. the question is how you change incentives. how do you make it painful enough for people, and stepping on their toes, to make them change and step back? we do not aim to be confrontational because we want to be antagonists. we aim for power everywhere, changing all of these entrenched interests. on the corporate side in particular, you end up seeing companies -- this is a great example, around jamba juice.

the country uses styrofoam cups. a girl is a big fan. she loves the jews but hate styrofoam. she says -- the juice, but hates styrofoam. in some ways, the campaign frustrates jamba juice. others are glad there is the impetus to encourage them to believe -- to do what many in the company already wanted to do. it gives them the agency to go to shareholders and make this public commitment that might be expensive, but they can justify based on pressure. >> for brands especially with the youth audience, you can see how they would be receptive to visible changes. do you think this platform could convince apple to drop foxconn? >> there is a

it's notable. it started from a virginia man. more than 200,000 people joined a forecast and protest. there was this underlying idea of the lack of a good pay. there was a substantial increase in hourly wages. there was a material reasoned. it used to be the case that you consider around a board room and be pretty confident that most decisions you made were in obscurity and there are things you were doing would undermine things in places people have never even heard about. when you are sitting around a board room, you must assume two famous.

every decision you make is going to be transparent and there will be a group of customers that will fight you told ito. if you cannot justify it in public, it's a very justifiable. >> as the argali, the power to set the dialogue -- previously, the parties of the dialogue was by anyone who had a public platform to shape of the dialogue. we have the capacity for mass communication without the mass media. they're now moving through a medium like the this of the individuals. the idea that an individual could speak to 100,000 people, who could do that before?

the ability to talk to large numbers of people and get an idea is really democratizing. at the top. >> i want to follow-up with your question ... box column. -- on foxfonn. people are working perhaps the first important job in their life and their sustaining themselves in the race that they make. why is mcdonald's in africa? i hear that it's the only nutritious, clean meal they can get. while we need to change practices, i agree. we may not want to go so far as to stop by people from working with foxconn. >> that's a valid point.

we do not take an official position. we encourage them to engage in public dialogue. mayor bloomberg made a comment about the difficulty of governing in the context of social media where every idea is transparent. we are and accountability- demanding body of citizens around the world. i have to make a public argument. >> the ability to organize does not change the distribution. it allows it to be more focused. ultimately come in the challenger on so many of these issues is finding a consensus for change that goes beyond. part of the challenges you make it easier for each tried to

organize and be heard to amplify, your word, it's a voice. does that get you closer work further away to some portion of the other tried? >> i will give an example. most issues, not the ones we talked about at a national local, but most of them are not that divisive. corporate accountability, one of the most exploited is the flower piggie industry. it is a double digit percentage of women who are pregnant while picking flowers. this and not something most people want. they recognize it is the wrong. to do. fair trade is the necessary next step. they want to except fair trade flowers. 24 hours later they made a 100-

degree turn. even people who were out at 1- 800-flowers they recognized was the right thing to do. they just dismissive. there are so many more examples. >> bloomberg is talking about the ability to organize in opposition to what ever it is. >> is a petition urging whoever wins to deal with the deficit down the fiscal close. it probably would not take off. >> there is a personal motive component. it is the cases of a minority of people, for those who do not

have equal rights, the issues of immigration are a great issue. greats been a conversation. thank you for joining me, ben rattray. larry will take you want to the next conversation. that was terrific. thank you very much. c-s [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] >> our cameras are on the rally for the governor romney in morristown, pennsylvania. he was erected to be there around 5:30 p.m. -- he was expected to be there. this is his third stop of the day.

newport news, va., is where he will end up later tonight. we will take your phone calls in a minute about campaign 2012. this crowd is supposedly in the thousands here. tomtom gerald tweeting they passed out under 34,000 tickets -- 2400 tickets and traffic is 1.5 mile out. thousands attending. 23,000 at obama's even in florida. the crowds get bigger and the days get smaller. let me now go to the senior political writer for "the philadelphia news." why is the governor romney in pennsylvania? he has not been there since september. guest: that have been very interested in having him come back here.

they believe this is a competitive state. the polls over the last few months have narrowed. they put it at about a four- point race right now with the president of 49%. gov. romney is up 45% among likely voters. that is close to the margin of error. host: his running mate, paul ryan, was here yesterday in harrisburg. why in this county? guest: it is one of the vote- rich areas. in many areas, the key for obama to win a second term in pennsylvania's 20 electoral votes is to win a very large in southeastern pennsylvania with

pittsburgh and more these around scramble. -- northeast aroudn scranton. it remains one of the strong republican counties in the philadelphia area. it will be easy to draw a large crowd and he will get all of the free media from the television market. host: what is the governor's ground game like in that state? guest: some of teh super pac's were own their with commercials and it did not seem to move the needle much. i'm not sure that one week a last-minute movement on either side will do much. the romney campaign has been doing more door knocks, as they call them, then senator john

mckay did in 2008. it is a big hurdle for them. -- and senator john mccain it did in 2008. they never really stopped working on that. i think both sides have formidable ground games in pennsylvania. turning out the vote is going to be the real decider here. a's one reason why we see last-minute advertising making a play for female voters by obama. he had a 14-point lead over female voters while romney had a six-point lead over the male voters. host: talk about the history of

pennsylvania and how they have voted for the president. guest: pennsylvania is unusual in that we have not elected a republican for president since 1988. that was the first time that president george h. w. bush ran. even though we have a republican governor and a state house controlled by republicans, the senate and the house. we always seem to be trending below, but at the last-minute presidential campaigns tend to show up here. the obama campaign calls it a hail mary pass. itaromney campaign colzalls move in a place the polls are narrowing.

that would tell me he thinks pennsylvania is in play. president clinton will be here tomorrow doing several stops in pennsylvania. he is one of the most of powerful political surrogates that president obama has. he's very popular in pennsylvania. i do not think we will see the president here. if he shows up, that is proof positive that pennsylvania could go either way. host: pennsylvania considered a battleground, but it is trending below and looking like it is going to be in obama's corner. -- but it is trending blue. describe what is going on in pennsylvania vs. ohio. guest: it has been much quieter. we have more surrogacy coming in and they draw smaller clowrowds. they pack the stadium, like you

are seeing today. i've noticed a sense of frustration among some that the romney campaign really has not tried harder. host: what are you looking for on election night? guest: i'm hoping we can tell you what the results will be. we still have some hurricanes and the stuff going on, not as bad as new york or new jersey, but all the polling place and should have power by tuesday and hopefully we will not have to do paper ballots and the slower way of counting votes. if i had to guess right now come

i would say president obama probably win as pennsylvania by four points. host: chris brennan with "these philadelphia daily news," senior political writer. we continue to watch as romney rally in pennsylvania. in national review political reporter and cnbc analyst says -- my mom callign from yardley. brooklyn, new york, democratic caller. what do you make of a campaign 2012? caller: i have actually volunteered for the obama campaign in new york and in georgia. host: why did you decide to

volunteer? caller: i was a little more active in 2008 but i thought i was a little late in joining the movement. i am a teacher. i wanted to make phone calls and go door-to-door. it was a really great experience. the ground game is really developed for the obama campaign. host: have you been impacted at all by the storm out there? caller: there are some local offices without electricity last week. we are up and running now. we were able to get up again very quickly thanks to coned, our mayor, and officials. host: was the coast. palmetto, calif. of, republican. caller: eyes.

this election will be a really interesting one. i believe governor romney will win. the support for obama, the broad support, is very soft. it shows from the first debate where his numbers really dropped like a rock. if you have that much support after a debate that dries up any kind of movement or momentum, that is an undertow. instead of that being a wave and going forward into the campaign, the support of all, will the collapse just enough where any close state is going to go romney. i mean anything over three points.

all of the crucial ones are 3 and under. i think we're going to see this as not as close as people think because of the softer support. host: what is your top issue? why are you behind romney? caller: fiscal issues, number one. taxes. like i said, we just moseley's fiscal, but i happened to really -- i was a supporter of mitt, not just the party, going into it. i would have been in 2008 but i defer everything because of senator mccain's history. if he wants to go for something, in his corner. disappointed host: that you have not seen the governor out there campaigning? neither of them are giving the

west coast much love. caller: why do we even have an election here? you do see a lot of those with her opponent, but we do not see senatorial adds. you made c one per week for feinstein and that's it. -- you may see one per week. host: there is a race in several states. the president visiting four battleground states today. we brought you the event from hollywood, fla., and then he went on to cincinnati, ohio. governor romney in pennsylvania here shortly and we will bring you that event live. earlier today, he was in cleveland ohio and the malign.

he will finish in when virginia. we're taking your phone calls here until governor romney's arrival. independent caller, go ahead. caller: i cannot believe anyone is buying what any of these guys are selling. i don't understand it. we have had obama for four years and he has done nothing really but made things worse. romney is basically a fat cat who gouged off our country and made a ton of money off of the people. what host: are you doing? caller: i'm voting for libertarian gary johnson. i'm not really begin to either one of these guys. host: democratic colleague from oregon. caller: thank you for taking my call. i'm obviously a supporter of the president, but my comment maybe

a little different than some of the others. i expect the republican nominee to act traditional, which he is, but my problem now is the number of supporters that he has. what that means in my life going forward, regardless of who wins, now, i needng like to vote for the next four years every day with every dollar. i'm going to start boycotting republican businesses. and going to try to the best of my ability to support my days. both locally and nationally. host: dennis in oregon. chandler, arizona.

caller: my on the air? host: welcome to the conversation. caller: obama of's idea -- i lived in not see germany and i can tell you that obama campaigns on social justice and all you will get is your fair shot at poverty. there will be no rich people. everyone will be very poor. socialism does not work. america was built on personal responsibility. my message to all of you to not sell your vote so she believed for government handouts. spend less on food stamps.

take it from me. i have the experience. this is my message. host: marco in miami. you are on the air. caller: how are you doing? hello? hello? how're you doing? host: we are listening. caller: i'm an independent cuban-american and i'm voting no, simply because i know the obama administration was handed after the republican george bush presidency was handed a bill of sale that was not any good. they did not fund the two wars that the republicans got us into. the romney campaign is just more of the same. that's why i'm supporting our president. i think that is the patriotic thing to do.

republicans have been on patriotic in how the have infiltrated the president. this guy is a continuation of george bush administration. i'm just disappointed that obama, being the decent president he is, did not jump more on that. host: two days before election day and we have live coverage of the presidential trail. the two candidates crisscrossing in battleground states. have been telling number of them today. this rally in pennsylvania for governor romney, people there looking cold and waiting for the governor to rise. we are hearing it could be after 6:30 p.m. eastern, so look for coverage. we will take your phone calls until the top of the hour and then we will bring you our "newsmakers" program.

barbara, new jersey, republican. what are your thoughts on campaign 2012? caller: and excited and hopeful that governor romney wins the presidency. i just see it in his face. he truly, truly loves our country. he wants to do the absolute best that he can. for me personally and my family, of these four years, two of them have been battling cancer. my daughter got divorced and has now moved in with us with her child. it is all because she cannot afford the price of gas, the food, the rent, all of that stuff. i'm just very helpful. host: have you always been behind governor romney or did you support another republican presidential candidate?

caller: have always been a behind him, yes. if your host: wanted him from the beginning? caller: yes. host: democratic caller from illinois. caller: hello. i just wanted to comment and say that i think romney is a liar and i cannot believe he is getting people to back him up. he's been called out, a lot of these issues. barack obama has done a lot to help this nation including and especially the health care bill. republicans have done nothing except compromise and try to work with each other against him. it has been their goal to work against the president. his 47% comments he made behind closed doors was extremely offensive.

i think obama will win and it will be very close. we need to get more people to turn now. it will be a sad day if ronny wins. it took eight years of bush to mess this thing up and it will take a little bit longer do they said. i think people should vote for barack obama. host: the vice-presidential candidates are also out on the trail today. joe biden in lakewood, fremont, and lancaster ohio. paul ryan's in wisconsin, minnesota, and he ended his day in colorado. those two on the stump as well today. mike in pennsylvania, republican caller. is that right? caller: thank you. good show. for the rally in itself, just a few words on the metrics of it. it is a key swing county, if you

will. there are really three. you will want to watch this county because this is one of the 3 key counties that is to watch. it went obama and by about 400,000 votes so you need to offset that. you can do that in the rural parts, but the key is really a few watch where this rally is, it's possible that you can marginalize that massive difference there to make up for the 400,000. here's the interesting thing. host: how you do that with the population center of philadelphia? caller: it's not easy, but there are large numbers in montgomery county and surrounding. if you look at the rural counties, they are all solid romney. that really chips away at it.

then you have pittsburgh which is another urban area that is obviously pro-obama. if you drive around, it's interesting. i know obama did not focus on pennsylvania for historical reasons, but if you drive around to get a pulse, it is incredibly interesting. there are many romney signs and you see very few obama signs. but's not a telltale sign, it's interesting. you did not see anything like that in 2008. it was obama everywhere. host: where are you in pennsylvania? caller: in montgomery county adjacent to philadelphia. host: is a democratic or republican area? caller: traditionally it has been starkly republican on a

local level but it slipped in 2008 for obama. i do disagree with the analyst there. i think he said it has been historically republican and i'm not sure if that's the case. it is a key county to watch for your callers. it has philadelphia. obama needs the 400,000 difference, the mathematical difference. if you just watch for that and see what the turnout is come it will be a good sign early on in will be a good sign early on in